Department for Transport

Bridges: Barcombe

Baroness Randerson: To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with Highways England regarding the (1) ecological, (2) environmental, and (3) heritage, impact of the proposed infilling of Barcombe Bridge in East Sussex; what alternatives have been considered to infilling; and why is the infilling being progressed using development powers rather than a planning application.

Baroness Vere of Norbiton: There are no current plans to infill Barcombe Bridge. All infilling and demolition work on the Historical Railways Estate, including Barcombe Bridge, has been paused while National Highways review their programme and seek additional input through the newly created Stakeholder Advisory Forum. National Highways will fully consult the Local Planning Authority at an appropriate official level irrespective of whether or not Permitted Development Rights already exist. These discussions would be documented prior to the commencement of any proposed works. National Highways has been engaging with Transport for the South East, Lewes and Eastbourne District Council and East Sussex County Council over the safe maintenance of the bridge. Specific engagement with Lewes and Eastbourne District Council has occurred over the past 18 months and is ongoing.

Department of Health and Social Care

Coronavirus: Vaccination

Lord Mendelsohn: To ask Her Majesty's Government (1) when, and (2) by whom, the extremely vulnerable in England were notified that they were eligible for COVID-19 booster vaccines.

Lord Kamall: On 14 September 2021, the Government accepted advice from the independent Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) that individuals who received vaccination in phase one of the COVID-19 vaccination programme in priority groups one to nine should be offered a booster vaccine. The JCVI advise that the booster vaccine dose is offered no earlier than six months after completion of the primary vaccine course and as far as possible be deployed in the same order as phase one. The first booster vaccine was administered on 16 September 2021 and in the week commencing 20 September 2021 over 1.5 million people were invited for their vaccine.The National Health Service will contact those who are eligible, including those with underlying health conditions that put them at higher risk of severe COVID-19.On 1 September 2021, the Government also accepted the JCVI’s advice to offer a third primary dose to those with severe immunosuppression at or around the time of their first or second primary dose of COVID-19 vaccination as a precautionary measure. The JCVI will review at a later date whether such persons require a further booster dose following completion of their three-dose primary vaccine course.

Disability: Children and Young People

Baroness Finlay of Llandaff: To ask Her Majesty's Government what fiscal steps they are taking to help disabled children, young people and families (1) to recover from missed health and social care services during the COVID-19 pandemic, and (2) to access the therapies, care, equipment and health services they need in for their future wellbeing.

Lord Kamall: The forthcoming Spending Review will set out the Government’s spending plans for health and social care for future years. On 6 September, we announced an additional £5.4 billion to support the COVID-19 response over the next six months - a total of more than £34 billion this year. This includes £2 billion to tackle the elective backlog and reducing waiting times for patients, including disabled children.We are working with the Department for Education and NHS England and NHS Improvement to improve the provision of health and care services for disabled children, including access to therapies and equipment. In 2020, NHS England and NHS Improvement made clear that the restoration of essential community services must be prioritised for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities aged up to 25 years old and who have an Education Health and Care Plan in place or are going through an assessment. We are supporting access to appropriate disability equipment via the NHS Supply Chain, which maintains a framework contract for the supply of rehabilitation and disabled services equipment, such as paediatric wheelchairs.

Social Services: Finance

Lord Lipsey: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many older people will benefit from the new cap on personal care payments for each year from 2023–24 to 2029–30.

Lord Kamall: Approximately half of all older adults receive some state support for their personal care costs under the current system. This will rise to nearly two-thirds of adults following the implementation of the reforms announced on 7 September. An impact assessment setting out the costs and benefits of social care charging reform will be published in due course.

Social Services: Finance

Lord Lipsey: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether care costs that are met at present by the nursing cost allowance will count towards the new £86,000 cost cap for personal care.

Lord Kamall: Nursing services provided or funded by the National Health Service are not subject to a financial assessment and contribution by the individual. NHS-funded nursing care will not count towards the £86,000 cap on social care costs due to be introduced in October 2023.

Coronavirus: Vaccination

Lord Hay of Ballyore: To ask Her Majesty's Government what is the timetable for the vaccine booster rollout, in particular for those designated as clinically extremely vulnerable.

Lord Kamall: The first booster vaccine was administered on 16 September 2021 and in the week commencing 20 September 2021 over 1.5 million people were invited for their vaccine.Booster vaccines will be offered to individuals who received vaccination in phase one of the vaccination programme in priority groups one to nine, including all those aged 16 to 49 years old with underlying health conditions that put them at higher risk of severe COVID-19. The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation advises that the dose is offered no earlier than six months after completion of the primary vaccine course, and that the programme should as far as possible be deployed in the same order as phase one.

Coronavirus: Vaccination

Lord Mendelsohn: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the type of vaccine to be used for the third COVID-19 vaccination forpatients who are immunosuppressed will (1) be decided by the doctors treating the patient, or (2) be decided by those administering doses at clinics.

Lord Mendelsohn: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the announcement that athird COVID-19 vaccine will be offeredtopeople who are immunosuppressed, what guidance has been issued regarding(1) the type of vaccine to be used, and (2) dosage.

Lord Kamall: For those aged 18 years old and over, the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) advise a preference for mRNA vaccines for the third primary dose, with the option of the AstraZeneca Vaxzevria vaccine for individuals who have received this vaccine previously.. The dosage is a third full dose of the relevant COVID-19 vaccine. The specialist involved should advise on whether the patient fulfils the eligibility criteria and on the timing of any third primary dose. NHS England and NHS Improvement issued Updated JCVI guidance for vaccinating immunosuppressed individuals with a third primary dose on 2 September 2021, on the vaccine preference for patients who are immunosuppressed and the guidance for how to proceed with third primary doses. A copy of the guidance is attached.In exceptional circumstances, persons who received a mRNA COVID-19 vaccine previously may be offered a third primary dose of the AstraZeneca Vaxzevria vaccine following a decision by a health professional on an individualised basis. For those aged 12 to 17 years old, the Pfizer vaccine remains the preferred choice.

Students: Vaccination

Baroness Morgan of Huyton: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to resolve the differences between the COVID-19 self isolation rules applying to domestic and international students who are fully vaccinated with a vaccine approved for use in this country in order to avoid (1) reputational damage to English universities and the UK Government, and (2) negatively affecting the implementation of 'household' systems in universities to manage outbreaks; and what guidance they are providing to universities to support incoming students with the self isolation rules.

Lord Kamall: Those who are fully vaccinated with a vaccine approved for use in and administered in the United Kingdom are not required to self-isolate if they are a contact of a positive case. Those under the age of 18 years and six months old are also not required to self-isolate if they are a contact of a positive case, which also applies to international students. Adults who have not been fully vaccinated in the UK, are legally required to self-isolate if they are the contact of a positive case. This continues to be kept under review, taking into account clinical judgement on risk and the prevalence of COVID within the UK and overseas. The Government has published Contingency framework: education and childcare settings which provides detailed procedures and the principles for managing local outbreaks of COVID-19 in all education settings, including guidance to universities to support all incoming students with self-isolation rules. A copy of this guidance is attached.Contingency Framework (pdf, 258.0KB)

Cabinet Office

Households

Lord Green of Deddington: To ask Her Majesty's Government, for each year from 2010 to date, how many UK households there were (1) with a non-UK born household reference person, (2) with a UK-born household reference person, and (3) with a household reference person for whom the country of birth was not known.

Lord True: The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority. I have, therefore, asked the Authority to respond.Lord Green of DeddingtonHouse of LordsLondonSW1A 0PW12 October 2021Dear Lord Green,As National Statistician and Chief Executive of the UK Statistics Authority, I am responding to your Parliamentary Question requesting data for how many UK households there were (1) with a non-UK born household reference person, (2) with a UK-born household reference person, and (3) with a household reference person for whom the country of birth was not known (HL2843).The Office for National Statistics is responsible for undertaking the Labour Force Survey (LFS), from which these estimates of household reference person by country of birth have been derived. Table 1 shows the number of households by the household reference person’s country of birth in the UK from 2010 to 20201.The table contains estimates of the number of households for household reference persons who are UK born, non-UK born or whose country of birth is missing. The totals of each column may not add up to the total households figure due to rounding, and estimates are rounded to the nearest hundred. As the estimates are based on a survey, they are subject to sampling variability. This is because the sample selected is only one of a large number of possible samples that could have been drawn from the population.Yours sincerely,Professor Sir Ian Diamond 1. A household reference person (HRP) is the householder who owns the accommodation; is legally responsible for the rent; or occupies the accommodation as reward of their employment, or through some relationship to its owner who is not a member of the household. If there are joint householders, the one with the highest income is the HRP. If their income is the same, then the eldest one is the HRP.Table 1 (pdf, 80.9KB)

Ministry of Defence

Army: Reorganisation

Lord Tunnicliffe: To ask Her Majesty's Government on what date infantry reorganisation plans will be published.

Baroness Goldie: Detailed plans for the future structure of the Army are still being refined. There will be announcements made on our intent for both the regular and reserve force in due course.

HMS Vanguard: Trident Submarines

Lord Tunnicliffe: To ask Her Majesty's Government on what date HMS Vanguard is expected to rejoin the fleet of Trident submarines.

Baroness Goldie: I am withholding details of when HMS Vanguard will re-join the Fleet as disclosure would, or would be likely to, prejudice the capability, effectiveness or security of the Armed Forces.